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Translator: Lizz
Everything in the world was made of a force invisible to humans. This force was simply called ‘power’ or ‘magic’. The flow of this force was called ‘magic vein’.
Magic vein was the flow of power that constituted this world, the way it existed, and its principles.
Now, there were rare individuals who were born with an organ called a ‘guiding vein’. Although invisible, it was thought to be similar to blood vessels or other internal organs that form the human body.
Since the human body was also part of the world, it was also composed of magic. It could be said to exist on the flow of the magic vein. While many people could not feel the magic vein by their own will, those who possessed guiding veins could feel and connect with the magic vein through them.
By connecting to the enormous power that was the magic vein through the guiding veins, these people could channel a part of that power with their will to bring about phenomena they envision. This was called ‘sorcery’. Additionally, people who could perform this through their guiding veins are called ‘mages’.
They had the lowest social status in Lavarta.
It was said that one in a hundred people were born with guiding veins.
These individuals influenced their surroundings from a young age, revealing the presence of their guiding veins. The manifestations varied, from causing wind with their cries to launching invisible attacks on others with their emotional fluctuations.
With training, a mage could control magic at will and cause various phenomena. This could range from creating fire for cooking or producing drinking water, to causing large fires that could burn down entire villages or floods, depending on the strength of the guiding veins. In Lavarta, magic was primarily used for military purposes, not just simply as a weapon but also to create fog or manipulate light refraction to make one invisible and such, assisting in ambushes or allow the mage to serve as a scout. However, it was said that magic could not create or transform matter itself.
As long as a guiding vein existed, there was a risk of causing harm to the surroundings regardless of one’s will if its use was not properly learned. The stronger the guiding vein, the higher the risk. Therefore, children confirmed to have guiding veins of a certain strength must apprentice under a mage with an instructor’s qualification to learn the technique of controlling magic through the guiding veins, known as ‘magic manipulation’.
Those who could cause phenomena that exceeded a certain level of sorcery – in other words, those who were recognized as mages – belonged to the mage guilds established in every reasonably large town, and engaged in tasks such as maintaining public order through these guilds.
Among them, those recognized as particularly talented were recommended to the most prominent organization of mages, the ‘Iron Fortress’ in the capital city of Rhiannon. Fewer than two thousand mages served there. They were truly the elite, the finest mage corps in Lavarta.
As mentioned earlier, mages were considered the lowest profession.
Those who possessed guiding veins, could perform magic, and were recognized as mages could not escape contempt. Bearing the emblem of a dagger in a birdcage, the medal which served as a mage’s certification also acted as a brand. Since they could not escape contempt, belonging to the Iron Fortress, which offered the best working conditions and highest status for mages, was the hope and aspiration of all mages. Many mages joined guilds in various towns, hoping that one day the path to the Iron Fortress would open for them.
On the contrary, those who possessed guiding veins but did not have enough talent to perform magic were fortunate. They could live while hiding the fact that they possessed guiding veins.
The most pitiable were those who could perform magic but lack significant power and could not even join a guild.
To become an instructor who taught and guided children with guiding veins, one must first be recognized by the Iron Fortress. Many of these instructors were employed at state-run training centers in towns of a certain size, or opened private schools themselves. To become an instructor, one must be able to perform magic and possess a certain level of knowledge about magic; the strength of the guiding vein was not very relevant. However, it was natural that more people wish to apprentice under famous mages who had achieved some accomplishments. The most popular were retired mages who belonged to the Iron Fortress.
Once, a mage from the village of Lille joined the Iron Fortress. It was a dainty, elegant young girl. As an adult, she was severely injured during a mission and retired, opening a private school in her hometown.
Normally, a mage’s private school in a remote village like Lille, far from the capital, wouldn’t attract people. However, because the instructor was a mage from the Iron Fortress, many children gathered from nearby villages and towns, and even from somewhat distant places, having heard of her reputation.
The name of that mage was Ceres.
A lot of the time, she had more than ten apprentices living in her house and learning magic. Her guidance was precise, and under her instruction, new mages of the Iron Fortress were born.
Among her apprentices was an ordinary red-haired boy with no particular distinguishing features.
At the age of eight, he came to Ceres from a distant village, a journey that took more than ten days on foot, almost as if he was being sent away as a nuisance. This was not unusual; having a mage in the family was a great dishonor. It was common to want to sever ties early, and it was still somewhat conscientious to properly apprentice the child so they wouldn’t struggle to make a living in the future.
The boy was quick to learn and excelled compared to children of his age, absorbing Ceres’s teachings like dry earth absorbing water. Above all, he always worked hard, memorizing various spells faster than more senior apprentices and learning to manipulate magic more precisely than anyone else.
In terms of knowledge and magic manipulation, he was among the top of Ceres’s apprentices. However, his guiding vein was unfortunately fragile by nature. With a weak guiding vein, he couldn’t manipulate large amounts of magic at once, resulting in his magic being far less powerful than the standard.
The boy’s name was Leon.
“Connect.”
As the short phrase softly echoed, Leon felt a warmth steadily flow into him. It was a sign that his guiding vein had connected with the magical vein, the flow of the world.
While muttering fragments of a spell, he moved the power connected to him as he wished. This power, shapeless and without sensation, yet certainly ‘existing’, was pieced together like a puzzle. As he assembled it according to the ‘form’ in his mind, several droplets of water appeared in the air, eventually forming a dancing stream.
To the right then to the left, slowly then quickly, the stream moved freely like performing a trick, and finally dispersed quietly at the root of a blooming flower. The air, gradually warming as spring drew to a close, became slightly cooler.
(Alright.)
Leon nodded slightly, confirming that he could manipulate magic perfectly as he had intended.
Many who studied magic stopped practicing these basic control exercises with time. However, during the eight years since becoming Ceres’ apprentice at the age of eight, Leon had never missed a day of practice. This was not because he was too earnest.
It was because, every morning when Leon woke up, he worried that something might have gone wrong with his abilities. He feared that one day, he might suddenly lose his magic, or that his control over it might fail.
Being a mage was a disgrace. There was nothing good about it. Even so, having been kicked out of his home and living a life solely dedicated to learning magic, what would become of him if he was no longer a mage? That was why he needed to confirm every day that he could still use magic to feel at ease.
Leon’s fellow apprentices always marveled at his control over magic. They often asked how he could manipulate it so precisely and freely. Whenever he was asked that question, Leon inwardly smiled bitterly without showing it on his face. ‘It’s because I’m different from you’, he thought. ‘Because, unlike you, I’m a failure.’
He had managed to get by with effort and quick tricks, but he knew he was reaching his limit.
Just then, a hoarse voice reached his ears. He quickly realized that the broken voice sounded like crying.
Searching for the source of the voice, he went around to the back of the school building, where he found a boy crouching in the shadow of a tree as if in hiding. The boy was Gray, who had become an apprentice last year. He was just eleven years old.
Ceres was strict with both herself and others and rarely showed a smile, but she never scolded harshly or raised her hand. Therefore, the reason the boy was hiding and crying here was probably not because of their mentor. It would be fine if it was simply because he was homesick, but if he was being bullied by other apprentices or villagers, it would leave a bad taste to ignore it. If it was the former, there was nothing Leon could do, but if it was the latter, it would be irresponsible of him, one of the older apprentices among the twelve, to leave it be.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
When he called out, Gray, who hadn’t noticed his presence at all, jumped up and looked at Leon with tear-filled eyes. He seemed surprised to see his senior apprentice there, and perhaps because of that, his tears stopped.
Seeing no visible injuries, Leon repeated his earlier words. The young boy hesitated for a moment, keeping his mouth shut, but just as Leon was about to leave him alone, the boy finally answered in a faint voice.
“I just… can’t do it, I don’t understand.”
“What is it?”
“Manipulate magic.”
So that was what it was. And Leon understood. While you could simply memorize spells, manipulating magic was different. First, you must connect your guiding vein to the magic vein, then control the magic vein with your will. This act was intuitive and difficult to explain in words. Most people with guiding veins could intuitively manipulate magic, but there were rare cases where the person lacked this intuition. In such cases, trying to manipulate magic for the first time would be very confusing for them.
(Once you get the hang of it, things will move quickly.)
However, succeeding that first time was difficult. If you couldn’t do it, you’d be left with a power that could go out of control at any moment, and you’d have to endure fear and loneliness for the rest of your life.
“Even Yuri has already managed to do it.”
The boy muttered as a fat drop of tear fell from his eyes. Yuri was a girl who had become an apprentice at the same time as Gray, and was probably one or two years younger than him.
Even after a year of apprenticeship, he still couldn’t manipulate magic and was being left behind by his younger peer… Anxiety weighed heavily on the young boy’s heart. Although he didn’t know exactly what would happen if he couldn’t become a mage despite having a guiding vein, he did have a vague understanding. The boy’s face was dark, and it seemed that even his young eyes showed a hint of despair.
(If only there was some kind of trigger…)
It was not that he lacked the ability. If he could just take that first step, things would be completely different.
Leon, who had slightly cast his eyes down and been pondering the boy’s future, nodded slightly.
“Hey, try connecting your guiding vein and the magic vein.”
After saying this, he realized that the boy didn’t even understand that sensation. He quickly apologized to the confused boy.
“No… Well, try to sharpen your senses. Try to sharpen your senses as if you are trying to distinguish a distant sound. Can you do that?”
Although he didn’t hide his confusion about why he was being told this, Gray vaguely nodded, perhaps thinking he couldn’t ignore his senior apprentice’s words. After confirming that the boy had a serious expression on his face, Leon directed his consciousness to his own guiding vein, and then to the magic vein connected to it. From there, he searched for Gray’s guiding vein, which was faintly connected to the magic vein, and linked it with his own guiding vein.
When connected to the magic vein, one can feel the breath of the world up close. The sound of the wind, the murmur of water, the rain falling on distant lands, the birds flying in the sky, the trees rooted in the ground… It felt as if you could sense the heartbeat of all living things in this world. However, now that Leon was connected to the guiding vein of another person, he felt a different sensation than usual.
A dark and stifling ashen scenery that resembled a cloudy sky, a throbbing pulse overflowing with the vitality of new buds, the fragile, teeth-clenching desperation to hold on despite being on the verge of being knocked down by the storm… It was easy to imagine that these sensations belonged to the boy in front of him.
Leon connected to Gray’s guiding vein as if nestling against it, then used it to re-establish the connection to the magic vein. While softly chanting, he directed his will through that connection, and began to weave power into a nameless form within himself.
Gray’s eyes widened as he felt something unknown stirring within him. And at the moment when the magic Leon had woven was finally activated – the sky cleared. The heavy, cloudy sky within the boy cleared. With a shock as if something had exploded, the withering buds sprouted vigorously all at once. It was at that moment that he felt such a sensation –
“Oww!”
“Ugh!”
With a loud splash, two small screams echoed simultaneously. Although they stared at each other in bewilderment, the reasons for their surprise were different for each of them.
“Wh-what was that just now? That strange feeling, like something pulling inside my body, what was that?”
Gray, his cheeks gradually reddening with excitement, desperately tried to convey the indescribable sensation. Leon simply nodded at him. The boy jumped up with joy.
“Wow, so that’s what manipulating magic feels like…!”
His voice was now bright and buoyant, a stark contrast to before. While the boy was elated, Leon was left with a bitter feeling.
The moment Leon connected to the magic vein through Gray’s guiding vein, he felt something different. The amount of power he touched was vastly different. Ignoring that discomfort and manipulating the magic resulted in this. If it had been just Leon, he would have only created a fist-sized ball of water in the air, but it ended up like a bucket of water had been overturned above their heads.
Gray’s guiding vein was different from Leon’s weak one.
Even a much younger child who had just succeeded in manipulating magic for the first time today could already use more magic power than him. Leon was once again reminded that it was presumptuous to call himself a mage; he felt as if a dark curtain had fallen before him. The young boy, oblivious to Leon’s feelings, continued to speak excitedly.
“Um, can you do that again? Please teach me how to manipulate magic!”
The boy’s eyes sparkled as he looked up at him, and Leon felt a dark desire to harshly reject him. Why should he take care of a stranger when he couldn’t even manage his own future? You should live as an incompetent person who couldn’t even manipulate magic properly, being pointed at and ridiculed.
Not avoiding the dark emotions welling up inside him, Leon lifted his head. He even smiled at the boy who was clapping his hands in joy. …No, seeing the innocent boy’s demeanor, a smile naturally appeared on his face.
He certainly had the desire to push him away, abandon him, hurt him. However, because he felt incompetent himself, he also had the desire to be of some help to someone, even if just a little. He wanted to be needed by someone, even if only a tiny bit.
From that day on, it became Leon’s daily routine to teach his junior apprentice how to manipulate magic after Ceres’ lessons.
Silavin: Do note all photos from the Light Novel will only be posted in the Patreon. A little troublesome to post it here.
